


When one door closes

by vegalocity



Category: Miraculous Ladybug, Tokyo Mew Mew
Genre: F/F, Incredibly pro-marinette, It really doesn't matter WHEN just sometime before Feast, Marinette Appreciation, Marinette is going through some stuff, Season 3 Spite, Season 3 divergent after eh... Party crasher I guess, Slow Burn, Something tangential to a Salt Fic, The first chapter has Ladybug giving it to Chat straight and him finally taking it seriouslys, but character critical, honor among magical girls, not necessarily character bashing, so if you're really into any part of the lovesquare esp. Ladynoir, written for the average ML fan, you may not want to read
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-28
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2019-11-06 20:18:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17946425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vegalocity/pseuds/vegalocity
Summary: Being Ladybug was just as complicated as being Marinette, but at least, today, progress had been made in either way.They were no closer to finding Hawkmoth than before, Lila hadn't stopped her Anti-Marinette Crusade, her relationship with Chat Noir was relegated to 'strictly professional' until he could salvage a friendship from his misplaced infatuation, and Adrien was still an unknown variable.But there was progress.





	1. Remember to lock it shut

**Author's Note:**

> Something that's not entirely a spite fic, but has its roots in spite fic.

It was official. Her life was on a downward spiral.

Chloe had been bad, that much had been certain. She'd been bullied, threatened, accused of theft, and a million more things under blonde haired tyranny, but she'd been able to pull through because, at the very least, with Chloe's reputation, everyone was already on her side.

But Lila, oh man. Lila was worse tenfold.

She didn't know what kind of sick hold the girl had over everyone's minds, but she'd been exerting it with a frightening ease. Marinette should have taken her threat that first day more seriously; it was easy to express her faith in people back then, it had only been one moment of stupidity from her friends simply being in awe of the new girl. But now that harmless kindness was over.

She could feel it like the fraying hem of a skirt worn down—the once thick chords of trust depleting into threads frayed by lies too big to be believed.

“Lila told me you thought it was annoying when I talk about the blog, is that true?”

“Lila said you thought my voice was grating. I'm sorry...”

“Lila told me...”

“Lila said...”

“Lila”

“Lila”

“Lila”

Marinette wanted to scream.

She'd been comforting her friends, insisting that she loved listening to Alya talk about what she's so passionate about, that Rose's voice was adorable. But she could see the lingering doubt, even as she assured them that Lila must have been mistaken— she knew better now than to say directly that she was lying— and misheard her, maybe her _tinnitus_ had returned without her knowing it, you know?

But that smirk that she'd shoot her from her spot in the back told her everything she needed to know.

Adrien was the only one not to drift from her, but the patient smile he'd shoot her over his shoulder was starting to get more and more irritating.

_If we confront her she'll just become an akuma again,_ he'd said.

_She hadn't caused any problems,_ he'd said.

Did he not see what she'd been doing? Did he not notice Alya had stopped leaning over during lessons to whisper jokes to the four of them? Did he realize that Marinette had stopped eating with their group out of sheer desperation to avoid the atmosphere Lila had caused around her?

Was he so self involved?

Some part of her distantly wondered how Chat Noir would respond if he knew _his lady_ was being treated like this. But nowadays, she wasn't even sure if she wanted to consider that anymore. Ever since Glaciator he'd been acting... _weird_...too. He'd told her that being friends was fine with him, but almost immediately afterward he went back on his word and began to flirt with her again.

While sure, they were still working just as well together, she was worrying about her relationship with him.

Her parents were still there, Fu was still there, even Tikki was still beside her, but if she lost Chat Noir because he couldn't get a relationship out of her... she didn't even want to know what would happen.

At least Hawkmoth was keeping the Akumas coming at a steady pace. It had become more stress-relieving than stress-inducing recently. Feeling her yo-yo go taut in her hand as she spun it to form a shield, the way the string would shake, just a _little_ to indicate it had grappled and she simply needed to jump for it to take her from one rooftop to another... All a balm for her nerves.

In a weird way lately, Akumas had become easier to deal with than her actual friends. It felt weird to admit that to herself, but it was slowly becoming the truth. At least she knew where she stood with them. They wanted her Miraculous, and they'd kill her if necessary. It made her heart beat faster and the adrenaline pouring into her bloodstream made her more awake, more alert. Tikki's magic in her legs and arms would allow her to feel like, if anything, she could at least control this in her life. She could still solve problems with a Lucky Charm in her hand.

But in a horrible twist, she was dreading what would happen the next time a Lucky Charm drove her to Master Fu's.

Maybe she'd been less-than objective when she'd given out the fox and turtle before. She certainly wasn't sure what she'd do if she had to in the future.

She'd learned how to play the game with her classmates, to bite back scathing comments and proof she now knew everyone would ignore, but the wedge Lila was driving between her and her friends...

It made her worry if she could still trust Alya and Nino with Trixx and Wayzz.

She felt so cruel just thinking about it, especially since they hadn't done anything for _Ladybug_ to mistrust either of them. It was _Marinette_ that was on the outs.

Would she go for broke and approach Chloe? At least Chloe had done so little over the course of all of this that she was pretty much the same.

Just the idea of purposefully seeking out Chloe over Alya or Nino made her feel a bit sick.

But if she couldn't trust herself enough to trust either of them, what choices did she have?

She knew she needed to stop overthinking it all. She could already feel herself worrying her way into having a migraine.

She was almost tempted to voluntarily return to the back of the class, if only to not have to deal with looking at people and seeing the doubt so close to her own face. That was more indication than anything that she needed to take a break.

On the upside, now that she'd started taking her lunches in other places, she was free to wander Paris so long as she wasn't far enough away to be back before the next round of classes began. It was useful, both to her civilian life and her hero life. She had so many new places where she could watch people for new design ideas, and so many new hiding places to transform and shortcuts to duck through to get places quicker.

And minutes earlier, her dogged pursuit of peace and quiet had lead her to a dance studio. It was about a three minute walk from the school building, so she could get back pretty easily and didn't have to worry about getting back early.

It would be a fantastic place to study movement.

The bell rang lightly when she entered, and the inside was a particularly homey reception room. It was small, sure— likely to save space for the studio itself in the back— but brightly decorated despite the lack of any store windows to the outside. A woman half-stood from the receptionist’s desk and smiled lightly at her.

“Welcome to Lafountaine Legacy Ballet Studio! Are you here to set up lessons, Mademoiselle?”

Marinette startled, half-surprised that the receptionist bothered to acknowledge her at all. Most studio receptionists usually waited until approached.

“Uh... Actually, I'm not here for ballet lessons.” That would be nice,though. No matter how graceful she was as Ladybug, it felt as though she was always destined to be a klutz. If she’d had the time to spare in her schedule, she might have considered taking it up.

“I'm a fashion designer, and I was wondering if I could sit in on a few lessons to properly study motion and fabric’s relation to it?” It occurred to her only after she asked how awful that may sound. “I-I I'm sorry! I mean no disrespect! I'm sure it must take so much grit and effort to study ballet and I don't mean to belittle the practice!” The receptionist raised a brow, and was just about to respond when the door in the back opened, revealing a stern-looking woman with pale skin poking her head out.

“Francesca, has the little bird arrived for her lessons finally?” she huffed, impatience lacing her tone, before she locked eyes with Marinette.

Her gaze was icy as she looked her up and down and Marinette felt so... deeply uncomfortable at the appraising look.

“Mlle Aizawa, I had hoped you'd take more severity in this introductory course before your enrollment to school came around, but I see you aren't taking this seriously enough to even appear in proper attire.”

Wait, what? Did she mistake her for whoever was late? “Uhm... Madame, I'm not-” the woman shook her head, clear stubbornness in her stance.

“I don't want to hear your excuses, little bird. Go get changed and you may survive in this country yet.”

“Madame Bisset, Mlle Aizawa pushed her first lesson to tomorrow, The storm in Tokyo delayed all flights and set her back a day.” The woman's sharp eyes turned to the receptionist then, her own stance going ramrod straight under the woman's appraising eye.

“Francesca, why was I not informed of this?”

“I sent you a voicemail informing you of it when the call arrived Madame, didn't you get it?”

Madame Bisset's eyes narrowed, before her gaze turned back into the studio. “That damn phone... Well if this isn't Aizawa, who is she?”

“Marinette, Madame!” She found herself squeaking, almost reflexively. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

“A new student then?” And just like that Madame Bisset's entire demeanor changed. Her sharp eyes melting into something far more warm, taking a step closer and giving Marinette a good look at the silver streaks that dotted her dark auburn hair, tied back in a severe bun- although the knowledge that she was a dance teacher made it seem far less stiff— and gave her a look of distinguished ease when she approached.

“Novice, I'm sure, no one through basic training stands like that.”

“Oh actually Madame-” Mme Bisset's hand came forward and, before Marinette could respond, she'd hooked her calloused fingers under Marinette’s chin and tilted her head up to properly meet her eyes.

“But lovely, nice bone structure, muscle from labor, and you said your name is Dupain, so... a baker's daughter I'm guessing?” She tilted her head to the side and smiled at Marinette, all needle teeth and ambition. “You may have started later than most Mlle Dupain-Cheng, but we'll make a Prima of you yet.”

“She's not here for lessons Madame.” Francesca cut in again, though if Marinette wasn't so boggled by how quickly this woman could switch between personas, she would have done it herself.

The smile vanished from Mme Bisset's face and, granted how quick the whole event had been, Marinette needed a second to realize that the ballet instructor was waiting for her to extrapolate on her own. Marinette straightened her back and spoke again, this time with as much confidence as she could muster.

“I'm actually a designer, Madame.” She chuckled nervously and waved her hands in front of herself. “I really admire dance clothes, especially the bodices and dresses that ballet incorporates so beautifully!” She could save this, she could. “I was wondering if I could have the honor of sitting in on a lesson to study figures in motion and how to apply outfits to them! Videos just aren't the same compared to study, you know?”

Mme Bisset folded her arms and Marinette feared the worst, prepared to apologize profusely for wasting her time and running off. She gave a small huff and shook her head and Marinette's gut dropped.

“The things some designers would do... Very well, but apparently I don't have any lessons before you go back to your own classes, I'm correct in assuming you're on your lunch hour, aren't I?” At Marinette's stunned nod, Mme Bisset held a hand to her chin as she thought.

“But it can't be for free. We may not be the most well known studio in Paris, Mlle Dupain Cheng, but we've trained as many greats as the most expensive academies out there.” She thought for a long moment and Marinette realized belatedly that she wasn't entirely sure why she was so eager for the older woman’s approval. She didn't _need_ to study ballet dancers to aid her designs that were made for movement. She could go to any sports function or watch dancing of any kind.

Mme Bisset held out her hand, with far more a gentleness than before, asked to see her design notebook.

Her face was unreadable as she flipped through the pages and Marinette could feel the panic rise as the longer it went on without any reaction. But as she closed the sketchbook and handed it back to Marinette, she smiled crookedly.

“I’ll tell you this. I let you drop in on lessons— provided you don't interrupt the actual workflow, of course— and in exchange, you design the outfits for my troupe's next performance. Our Swan Lake outfits are due for an upgrade from a fresh pair of eyes.”

A blush rose up on her cheekbones. For a moment, her mouth opened and shut pointlessly  not dissimilar to that of a gaping fish.

“Are... Are you serious?”

“I'm not one to lie, Mademoiselle.”

And what could Marinette say in response beyond:

“It's a deal, Madame Bisset!”

They shook on it, and discussed the times Marinette could come in, both around her school schedule and when Mme Bisset had lessons planned out. And when it was all made official through Francesca's spreadsheets Marinette took a deep breath.

Her first sit in was this time tomorrow, with the new student Mme Bisset had confused her for, apparently having another set of eyes on her would aid in making sure she got the new girl's entire effort in her first lesson, and nothing was held back.

And Marinette couldn't wait.

* * *

Of course it was just when her optimism for the future began the world tried to crush it again. Marinette had just made it back to school—at least five minutes to spare mind you, she was cutting it a bit close, but she wasn't late—when the world decided to be cruel to her once again.

She tugged at the door for Mlle Bustier's classroom and nothing happened. The door trembled under her grip but held firm.

“What the-?”

“Maybe it's stuck?” Tikki supplied quietly from her purse. “Kim did spill that soda on the hinges yesterday.”

“Maybe...” But she gave another, harder tug, and nothing happened again. This time there came a muffled sound of desks scraping against the ground on the other side of the door.

That just raised questions.

“Hey!” She knocked on the door, Tikki hiding in her purse once again. “If anyone's in there! The door won't open!”

There was a rustling and eventually Alix's voice came through on the other side.

“Sorry Marinette, the tables are all weird and crooked, we have to put Bustiers desk somewhere while we put it all together.”

She huffed. The desks hadn't been 'all weird and crooked' last she was in there, but apparently enough people agreed that they'd decided to fix things themselves—without informing the Class President. 

Because that made sense.

“Is Mlle Bustier in there with you? Because I'm not late! I really don't want to be marked late because the door won't open!”

But Alix was already gone, called away by the muffled voice of... someone she couldn't quite tell. It might have been Alya.

She tried the door a few more times, hoping to get it open enough to wriggle her way inside, but nothing came of it.

“If only I kept my strength when I'm not transformed...” she mumbled quietly, and she could feel the light pressure of Tikki nuzzling up to the side of her leg through her purse. She gave the door another push, throwing in as much weight and strength as she could.

With a forced 'creak' the door finally eked open a bit. And low and behold, Mlle Bustier’s desk was indeed pressed against the door. Marinette huffed and gave the door another push, and—just barely—there came enough space for her to slip through.

The tables the lot of them sat at were, of course, an absolute horror zone, as people lifted and pushed and lowered and pulled them all over the place, in seemingly random directions. 

And somehow she wasn't surprised that, in the middle of all of this chaos stood Lila, hand on her chin and the face of someone who was taking deep joy out of what she was doing.

Marinette felt her gut drop, and she grit her teeth when the girl's hazel eyes turned to her, fake surprise coming onto her features when she glanced to the door. “Oh! Marinette! I'm so sorry! I didn't even realize that you weren't with us!”

Wow.

She smiled, hoping it didn't look too much like a grimace. Lila knew exactly what she was doing, testing to see just how far she could get the others to go based just on her word.

“Was this your idea, then?”

“Lila's really got an eye for these things!” Kim answered Marinette's question for her. “She noticed that the tables were all wonky and weird! Like, some of them were bigger than the others, but the organization didn't make sense!”

“My cousin's an interior decorator!” Lila added in, as though that added legitimacy to anything. “And he taught me everything he knew about Feng Shui, and the disorder these desks were in has been driving me nuts!”

“And the best place for Mlle Bustier's desk was barricading the door?” She folded her arms, letting her voice be as dry as it could be. While she was sure that both Lila's cousin and her supposed expertise were absolute bull, she had to play a little smarter.

_Don’t say she’s a liar to her face, everyone already took_ her _side on that matter, instead focus on things she could pass of as simple logical fallacies._

Of course it was Nino to speak up next, and that uncomfortable feeling from before started to come back into her gut.

“We needed space while we were moving things, Marinette. It's not like we were trying to barricade anyone!”

“And putting it in the corner with the stacked chairs was right out? Barricading people from entering isn't exactly the best option when a bunch of students are doing something on their own.”

Alya sighed and folded her arms and Marinette had to take a deep breath herself.

“Girl, if you'd stop wandering off by yourself you’da been here when we decided to and you wouldn't have been barricaded out in the first place!”

There was a row of light, tittering chuckles, one far louder from Chloe, a fake apologetic look from Lila, and a truly apologetic look from Adrien.

“I'm not worried about me, what would happen if Mlle Bustier was the one barricaded outside? We'd all get in trouble!”

At least Alya looked sheepish for a moment.

Only a moment.

Because after that beat Lila spoke up again.

“Oh Marinette, I'm so sorry!” She cried theatrically “I was walking all over your territory as Class president! No wonder you don't like me! I wouldn't like me either!”

And suddenly reasonable concerns were out the window and it was Planet Lila again. Alya shook her head at Marinette, disappointment practically radiating off of her in waves. Rose immediately rushed for Lila's side, hugging her and assuring her that she'd done a good job and it 'wasn't her fault' whatever 'it' was.

At least Mlle Bustier was a little late herself, so Ivan and Kim were able to move her desk back into place by the time she'd arrived.

Adrien shot her a reassuring smile over his shoulder, and Marinette struggled to return it.

The tables weren't different, if anyone had an eye for detail it was Marinette, and none of the tables were sized differently. Adrien must have known that, if only by virtue of knowing Lila was a liar as well.

No one was getting hurt _now,_ but they'd be getting hurt when they realized Lila was watching them all like her own personal parade of dancing monkeys.

She found herself sketching swans in the margins of her notes for the rest of the day.

* * *

There was something freeing about being Ladybug after a bad day as Marinette— and honestly with how her life was currently going, those were as frequent as they were back when she was still under Chloe's thumb— that just made her feel so... weightless.

She'd finished her homework when she got home, written down ideas she'd want to explore when her study alongside Mme Bisset began and transformed right after supper.

The wind ripped through her hair, air pressure heavy on her shoulders, but nothing on her feet. Though feeling was a little muffled through the suit, there were some sensations that remained: the slick feeling of the suit itself not dissimilar to the shell of the insect she named herself after, the wind in every part of her body, the pressure, the chill, _the sound_.

It was freeing.

Of course, she wasn't out for long alone. Soon enough, she heard the whirr of her yo-yo being accompanied by the clang of a staff and she didn't need to look to know Chat Noir was running at her heels.

“Evening, M’Lady!” He chirped. She resisted a groan. Marinette was truly happy to have him as a friend, but she'd really hoped that she wouldn't have to talk for a little bit, and could just lose herself in the sensations, so she took a moment to answer.

She must have been just a little too slow on the response, because she saw Chat come into her peripherals and wave a hand. “Hello? Earth-to-Buginette?”

“Yeah. Hi, Chat. Sorry, I didn't expect company.” _Or want it, but that’s neither here nor there._ “I thought I was on solo patrol tonight.”

“Well, on the books sure, but you swung right over my head earlier and I just _had_ to join you!”

“Then I guess I'm happy for the company!” And really, she should be. Chat didn't know that she'd rather be alone right now, and she didn't want to hurt his feelings.

So, they ran side by side, Marinette doing her best to lose herself in the wind again, and stopping every so often when one of them needed a short breather.

“You've been awful quiet tonight M'Lady.” Chat hummed. Marinette shrugged and dropped down so her feet would hang off the side of the roof the two of them were on top of.

“Had a rough day.”

“Oh? Well, if you need an ear, I can lend one- I have a surplus!” When Marinette turned to ask him what he meant, his cat ears wiggled back at her.

Even in Hero Mode, Marinette couldn't stop herself from laughing. She didn't know that his fake ears could even move under their own power, so her laughter was definitely in part done out of surprise.

Chat, of course, took it as approval and moved to sit beside her— at a respectable distance, thank god, she didn't want to have another conversation with him about that stuff right now— and leaned backward, his arms propping him up.

“So what on Earth could shake your endless optimism?” The reminder killed every remnant of mirth that was still there. She huffed and pulled one of her knees up to rest her arm onto it.

“Eh, it's nothing big. Some girl in my class has decided to dedicate her life to ruining mine.” At least when Chloe would try to ruin her life she didn't have the conviction to keep going with it in between moments of high passion. “She's trying to turn everyone I know against me.”

Chat hummed beside her, Marinette had her sight turned back to the streets, so she didn't have the vantage point to read his face, but he hopefully was actually listening.

“Are you sure she is? It might just be some kind of misunderstanding.”

Marinette snorted. It wasn't Chat's fault, of course- he didn't know the situation- but just the _idea_ of everything at this point being something as simple as a misunderstanding was perversely hilarious. “No, no, she straight up said it to my face the single minute I let her be alone with me. 'Steal all my friends and the guy I like right out from under me if I go against her' in her own words. Every time I look in her general direction she smirks at me, so I'm pretty sure she's still going with that.

“She's just... _really_ good at manipulating people I guess, because no matter how many times I've tried to tell everyone the truth or expose her, she just whines and cries until I'm the one who looks like the jerk.”

Chat made an uncomfortable noise then, and alongside that came a stream of 'clack'ing as the heels of his boots hit the wall beneath them as he kicked his feet back and forth.

“That's uh... that sucks.” he said, haltingly. He straightened up in her peripheral vision, and though she still couldn't see his face without turning to look at him, he seemed a little on the uncomfortable side. “But like, is she hurting anyone? I mean, yeah it sucks that she's doing this, but if no one's getting hurt or becoming akumas because of her-”

Okay, now _that_ was too close for comfort. “She's hurting _me_.” Marinette looked over at him now, and Chat was visibly uncomfortable, but she needed to press in her point before Chat inadvertently agreed with Adrien. “She nearly caused _me_ to be an Akuma.” He flinched. “If my Kwami hadn't walked me through feeling better, that could have been a disaster.”

Marinette huffed and rubbed her neck, massaging the tense nerves beneath her suit. “And now that people are used to her around she's been making good on her threat. I told her I wasn't scared of her, but now here she is.”

Chat Noir had stopped meeting her eye, his gaze on his knees in a display of nervousness Marinette had only ever seen in bits and pieces over their time working together. But, eventually, he thought of something to say.

“I'd be by your side M'Lady.” She felt a pressure on her free hand, and quickly pulled her hand back, out of Chat's grip.

“I'd hope so, Kitty. But you've distrusted my judge of character before. And for all the effort she's putting into going after my friends _and_ the guy I like, you'd be high on her 'to steal from Ladybug' list too.”

“No manipulations could lead me away from you though!” He leaned onto one hand this time, the other placed dramatically over his heart. “No manipulative girl could make my heart change! You're my Lady.

“And hey!” He shrugged, half smile on his face. “If your Prince Charming is such a dope that he'd be swept up in this girls machinations, you probably deserve better than him.”

Marinette pressed her lips together. She didn't want to ruin the sincerity in his voice by insisting that Adrien was better than he was giving him credit for, But Adrien _was_ better than that.

“Maybe it would be best to... I dunno, focus on other guys?” He looked back at her, and she could see the hint of his canines in his grin.

Aaandd there it was.

“Your assessment is a little off the mark, Kitty. But even if it wasn't, you probably shouldn't be going around encouraging girls to use you as a rebound.”

Chat sighed, that sort of dejected sadness in him that incurred both guilt and irritation in Marinette.

“Would it really be a rebound though? You deserve better than someone who would let someone manipulate him so easily!”

“I can't just turn off my feelings, Chat. Even if I decided to stop pursuing him— which I haven't— I can't consciously decide not to like someone and like someone else no more or less than you could.”

He made a noise then, that almost reminded Marinette of Manon when she didn't get her way. A mix between a huff and a whine that was accompanied by the retracting of his hand and his gaze fixing to the sky.

“But...” He continued, quieter now, and kind of...hurt? “I'd treat you better than he ever could.”

Marinette sighed. She hated having these kinds of talks with Chat Noir, he was sweet, and he was sincere, and she cared deeply about him. But he was her partner; and not in the 'heroes can never fall in love' type way, but in the 'We work too well together for romance to muddle everything up' type way.

She liked where they were now. And in a perfect world, he would too.

She could just imagine it: patrols filled with offhand boasting about date nights and the little things, spoken in just general enough terms that no one would ever know who they spoke of.

She could gush about Adrien playing the piano for her, or how he'd sworn to one day defeat her in Robot Uprising.

Chat Noir would laugh and, hands behind his head, talk with the dizzy eyed dreamy look on his face he used to look at her with as he described a woman of great beauty and deep passion. The two of them skipping their after school practices and going to an arcade together, or anything of that sort of harmless chaos that Chat did best.

They'd have 'my horse is bigger than your horse' matches where they tried to insist that they had the better Datemate, working the balance between relaying just how great theirs was while still speaking vaguely enough that they wouldn't reveal their identities to each other through said Datemate's identity.

But that would require him finally taking her seriously and backing off first. She might have gotten on shaky ground lately with Adrien, but that didn't mean that Chat should be allowed to get his heart broken because she kept letting him foster this hope that there would be something there if he waited long enough.

“Chat, I trust you, you know that right? I trust you with my life, with the lives of Paris, and if it came down to it I'd trust you with my Miraculous.”

It seemed like this time he knew what was coming.

Chat sat up straighter, and Marinette copied his motion. Against the twinkling lights of the city around them Chat's eyes looked brighter; but his face was a hollow, pinched thing.

She hoped that light wasn't building tears. She was such a sympathy crier if he started then she'd be blubbering within seconds.

“I trust you too, Ladybug.”

“I will never abandon you, I'll do my best to never be taken by a brainwashing akuma so I won't ever have to hurt you.”

“I know.” His voice was trembling now. Oh crap, he _was_ about to cry.

“And I do love you, but not in the way you want me to.” She took his hand then, into both of hers, and held it up. “And I don't think I ever will.”

Chat's eyes darted to the side, and unfortunately for Marinette's own stability the tears began to visibly cloud his eyes.

Almost immediately she felt her throat begin to tighten in sympathy.

Marinette gave his hand a small squeeze before letting it go when he tugged. He scrubbed at his eyes with a vigor, and Marinette quickly took the opportunity to wipe her own eyes before they ended up overly moist as well.

“I don't get it.” He finally said, his wrist still firmly over his eyes. “We're _partners!_ We're supposed to be like Yin and Yang, aren't we?” His lips were pressed into a thin line and it looked like he was starting to shake. Marinette wanted to reach over and hug him, but she had a feeling it wouldn't be a welcome action. “It's not supposed to be like this, I thought I was doing things right.”

“Come on, Chat, we might be superheroes, but this isn't a comic book. You can't just fill out a checklist and expect everything to fall into place.”

“But I love you!” He ripped his hand away to look at Marinette then. And then, before she could react any further he'd grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into a crushing hug.

His arms were tight around her, but from either of their positions her legs were bent at an awkward angle, and his knees were pressing up against her sides. It almost made it hard to breathe with how tightly he was grabbing at her.

His voice was just barely over a whisper. If she hadn't been in such close proximity to him, she might have missed it entirely. “I love you so much, Ladybug.”

“Oh Chat...” She wished this didn't have to be such a big deal. She'd just wanted to vent about Lila to someone who would listen, she didn't want today to finally be the one where Chat finally took her rejections seriously. But at least the bandaid was off.

It took a bit of work, but she wiggled her arms free to pull around his midsection. “I'm sorry” she said quietly. “But I want us to still be a team. Please don't stop being my friend, Chat. I don't know what I'd do with myself if I lost you too.” He squeezed her tighter for a moment before pulling away.

“Are you gonna be okay?”

He still wasn't looking at her, but he nodded all the same. “Yeah.” He said after a pause. “I'll be okay. Hawkmoth won't be making an Akuma out of me tonight.”

“That's not what I meant.”

“I know, but that's all I can answer right now.” he scribbled at his eyes one more time. “I don't want to lose you as a friend either, but for a bit, we should probably be Business Mode only, ya know?”

It made sense. Marinette stood, and Chat followed her lead. “You're right. Give each other some space, I get it.”

And for the first time in a long time the silence that fell between them was awkward. Stifling almost. Marinette needed to break it before it became the norm between them.

“Well, I'll be finishing up my rounds, you should probably go home. Maybe uh... Call a friend?”

“Yeah... Yeah that sounds smart.”

But before Marinette could let loose her yo-yo and jump off, Chat had grabbed her hand.

He guided it upward to kiss her knuckles, and Marinette's heart cracked in her chest.

“Goodbye, My Lady.”

And then he vanished into the night.

And Marinette knew this was the right thing, it wasn't fair to Chat or herself to let things go further than they already had. She didn't have any romantic feelings towards Chat, and she wasn't one to lie to herself either, so it was the right thing to do to end this when he finally began to take her thoughts on the matter seriously.

But hurting her partner like that still made her feel sick.

She ended patrol early, but in a pleasant surprise, sleep came easier than it usually did. A weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

Being Ladybug was just as complicated as being Marinette, but at least, today, progress had been made in either way.

They were no closer to finding Hawkmoth than before, Lila hadn't stopped her Anti-Marinette Crusade, her relationship with Chat Noir was relegated to 'strictly professional' until he could salvage a friendship from his misplaced infatuation, and Adrien was still an unknown variable.

But there was progress.

Chat respected Ladybug's refusal this time, and they finally have the truth to mend the gap that had been caused by his former denials, and Marinette was going another step further in her aspirations to become a designer.

There was progress.


	2. There's no point in forcing it open

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heartbreak is never fun, but we do our best with what we get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter kicked my ass, but at least the Meet Cute was well received by my betas

If she wasn't so tuned into the people around her, Marinette might have gone through the entirety of morning classes in a haze of excitement and nerves. She could take Lila today, she could take a hundred Lila's all spreading different awful lies about her. Because today was the day her story finally started to continue again. She'd packed a lunch back home so that she could eat on her way to the studio, she had her sketchbook and pencils, and even a couple of sticks of colored charcoal just in case. She'd been tempted to try and see if Lafontaine Legacy had any videos of their previous performances of Swan Lake floating around in the internet somewhere for her to study, but she'd woken up a little too late for such a thing. Either way for the first time in a whole damn month Marinette had walked into school excited. (Not for school, sure, but excited nonetheless) And if she had let herself be lost in said excitement she probably could have gone through the whole day in a haze, letting everything bounce off of her like crumpled up napkins that in no way could put someone's eye out. But she wasn't wired like that, and the second she entered the classroom her good mood plummeted.

Adrien was curled over his desk, head resting in folded arms and eyes downcast. Sadness practically emanated off of him in waves and even if Marinette wasn't the kind of person to notice that stuff, she could have felt it. Her heart ached at the idea of Adrien being brought down by... well.. anything! And she wished she'd brought some sort of pastry along with her to offer to him today. Nino hadn't showed up yet so she slid herself neatly beside him and leaned into his periphery.

You know, maybe it was a good thing that her initial idea of him had shaken a bit. He was kind and sweet and still everything she wanted in a man, but too passive for his own good. Too willing to turn a blind eye, and it had shaken her from most of her nerves. He wasn't an infallible source of good, he was just a complicated human being. Just like the rest of them. Maybe once all of this was over she'd be able to confess to him without dying inside.

“Morning Marinette.” He mumbled, eyes barely gliding over her once before returning to staring blandly into space.

“Are you alright?” She responded instead. “You look upset.”

Adrien chuckled absently. “Well I am. Kinda par for the course when you get your heart broken.” A jolt went through her gut, For a moment a protective fire lit up in her. Kagami. Goddammit what the hell did she _do_ to him?!

“W-What happened?”

Adrien looked away from her, gaze darting somewhere near her purse “I know you like helping people Marinette, but you're not gonna be able to help this time.” He waved a hand “It's fine, I talked things out already, right now I'd just rather be left alone.” He closed his eyes again. “I really don't wanna break my 'never been Akumatized' streak, so if you could like... Tell Chloe and Lila to not bother me today if they're not going to be quiet, I'd really appreciate it.”

Her lips pinched together at the very idea that either of them would listen to her, but if it was for Adrien, she supposed she could suck it up. She just hoped Chloe wouldn't be overly contrary with her if Adrien's wellbeing is on the line, or that Lila wouldn't spin it to make her look like a jerk for looking out for Adrien.

...Lila was gonna spin it to make her look like a jerk for looking out for Adrien, wasn't she? Marinette shook her head as though to banish the thought physically. She had to try. She was Adrien's friend—no matter if she wanted something more or not—so she had to try.

Thankfully for her Nino was quick to come in next, He shot her a confused look when she took his arm and guided him to the other side of the doorway. Ivan and Mylene were approaching Mlle Bustier's door, but Neither Chloe nor Lila were in sight. Thankfully that meant she could brief Nino alone.

“What's up, Marinette?” He looked so guarded. Marinette's gut dropped, but she clenched her jaw and told herself she was better than that.

“Just thought you should know so he doesn't have to explain it. Adrien's dealing with some relationship stuff right now.” Nino's brows shot up in surprise.

“Seriously? But he's not even dating anyone?”

“Well he told me directly he was heartbroken so...” She shrugged. “I'm thinking it might be Kagami since he's liked her for a bit; but he didn't want to elaborate so I didn't push him.” Though at least nobody could accuse her of lying for whatever reason, since Adrien would be right there to corroborate her story, even if he didn't want to talk about it.

“He really doesn't want to be bothered by anyone if they're not going to be quiet about it, so if Chloe or anyone else starts going at him super fast and Loud and I can't stop them, can you maybe offer some backup? Since you guys sit next to eachother?”

Nino thought for a moment before smiling wanly at Marinette. A dim flicker of doubt behind his eyes that made Marinette feel a bit sick. “No prob Marinette. But I'm gonna see if my best bro won't tell me himself, ya know? Not that I don't trust you!” he raised his hands in a show of good faith and Marinette really wished she could believe it. “I just wanna see if I can get more info outta him.”

Well, since it was Nino, Adrien was bound to tell him. They weren't best friends for nothing, even if Nino was kinda treating Adrien the same way Alya was treating her even before Lila returned to school. That was, second fiddle, but that was neither here nor there.

She was going to study ballet motions and submit designs for a professional troupe today.

She sucked in a breath and refused to let her issues spoil her day.

And then Lila and Alya were walking toward the classroom door and her issues threatened to spoil her day. Her smile felt more pinched than it looked—at least she hoped it did. Lila and Alya were chatting about something, Alya's phone was out, but she wasn't looking at it, gaze trained on Lila as the blowhard began to ramble about something. Probably another apocryphal story about something _so_ amazing and cool and it was no big DEAL she just helped stop the Republic of Ireland from marching on Britain and starting another war to try and get back the rest of Ireland from them.

“--so I looked to M. Varadkar and I asked if reclaiming Belfast really was the best way to break Ireland from the United Kingdom or if he just didn't like the English. Now, I'm not saying I stopped the whole thing right there, but he did look like he was deeply considering my words and the next day he called off the attack order so...”

“Wow! I guess sometimes you just need to hear a voice of the youth to get a new perspective, right?”

Sometimes Marinette hated her intuition. But, she told herself to buck up internally. _This is for Adrien. He doesn't want Lila to bother him today, just focus on your phrasing. Nino just went in to get the details, so he can bear witness, and Adrien himself can too._

“Hey Marinette!” Lila called out, the fakey politeness oozing from the very way she said her name. “Good morning! How's my favorite designer!" Marinette swallowed hard and gave her best 'apologetic grin'

“Hey Lila, Hi Alya.” The grin Alya gave her was lopsided, unsure, like she didn't know if Marinette was worthy of being greeted at all.

Don't think about it, just do it. “So real quick, so you both know, Adrien went through some rough stuff yesterday, I'm not sure what, he didn't want to go into detail, but he really doesn't want a bunch of people to talk to him.” She paused for a second, hoping beyond hope that this wasn't a mistake to include, “He said something about getting his heart broken before he asked me to make sure people know, and Nino's in there right now getting details, so just... be careful.”

Lila's eyes were narrowed, and from her position slightly behind Alya, Marinette could see a lazy smirk dance upon her face.

“Woah, really?” Alya interjected, worry overpowering the newfound tension between the two of them. “You think it was Kagami?”

Marinette shrugged “He didn't say, but he does like her, so...?”

“I'll bet it was Ladybug.” Lila's brows furrowed together and her arms folded. She shut her eyes and shook her head. “She called me last night to say that she and Chat Noir have finally hooked up, Adrien must have seen it or heard about it somehow. He's just having 'Hero Crush' Whiplash.” She opened her eyes and grinned with a false sympathy as Alya's head whipped over to her.

“Wait, Ladybug and Chat Noir are together?!”

Marinette's lips pinched into what she hoped didn't look _too_ much like an impression of a Frog. Talk about the exact opposite happening the previous night. She felt a pang of guilt in her gut at the concept that wherever he went to school, Chat Noir might be feeling just as down as Adrien right now, and her partner's pain was her fault.

\

Lila gasped, covering her mouth like she'd made a mistake. "Oh no! I forgot I wasn't supposed to say anything!”

But Marinette would at least give Lila this; while the lie was outrageous and so goddamn easy to refute in a single interview, she was at least willing to hide the falsities in speculation. So if it was Kagami like Marinette suspected, she could still keep face and just say she assumed Adrien had a crush on Ladybug because every boy she knew did, and _woe is her to be the best friend of such a superhero heartthrob, she's such a girl next door,_ sigh _she'll never find a boyfriend._ It was aggravating and God if anyone at all knew her secret it could be so easy to destroy... But the longer she was around Paris the better she was getting at it.

She glanced at Marinette only for a heartbeat before she covered her face in supposed embarrassment as metaphorical stars began to appear in Alya's eyes as she grabbed Lila's shoulder and began to shake her back and forth. She had to keep watch out here to tell Chloe. Adrien was her friend and his wellbeing was enough for the two of them to play nice, at least Marinette hoped it would. The two of them have been able to bury the ax before, and at the very least Chloe owed her a _bit_ for helping her connect with her mother. She did not have the time nor patience to play Lila's chess game.

“No Girl, You can't just leave it there! I need the Details!”

And then the floor fell out from under her.

Marinette knew they were friends, no matter how much she wished Alya had more sense than to mindlessly believe everything she said, she knew they were getting closer one fake fact about Ladybug at a time. She knew Lila had been engineering this sort of relationship from the first day she 'returned' to Paris. But the girls in class—minus Sabrina and Chloe—were all friends with eachother, and not _once_ had Marinette ever heard Alya affectionately call someone 'Girl' but her. And sure, maybe that was possessive, and immature, and Alya can use whatever nicknames she wants for anyone.

But Lila shifted her fingers just enough so the eye furthest from Alya could be seen. And the silent _mocking_ smugness was glittering in her single glance as she and Alya stumbled inside, Alya still demanding she give her the details—though thankfully she'd gotten to the point of excitement when her descriptiveness took a dive and her demand was just 'Tell me' on repeat.

Marinette's knees felt weak. She pressed her back to the wall beside the door and slowly slid her way down.

“Marinette?” She heard Tikki whisper somewhere between her left ear and her shoulder, her little Kwami abandoning her hiding place in her purse to give a little more comfort than yesterday.

“I'll be... I'll be fine.” She had to be fine. She was Ladybug, she was Marinette. She had to lead by example, she had to stay positive and never let an Akuma flutter its wings at her again. “I need a minute, but I'll be fine.” Because she had to be. She had to be okay with Lila making actual headway with her threat. She had to be fine with being moved around like a chess piece and having her place in her friend's lives be stolen by a liar.

She had to be fine.

“Because I'm designing ballet outfits today.”

“That's right!” Tikki chirped quietly. “Madame Bisset only needed to glance at your sketchbook for a moment before she knew you were talented enough to redesign her costumes!” A small smile came onto Marinette's face at that.

It seemed like everything Lila touched was turning to ash around her, But she couldn't take that from her. Her friends, her reputation among the school, perhaps even Adrien if she could push the right buttons, had potential to turn their backs on her. But Lafontaine Legacy would never fall. Because she'd never find out about it. Lafontaine Legacy was hers. Nobody would know about it if it would keep Lila's filthy words away from the hallowed halls of the dance studio. Nobody would know but her and Tikki and Master Fu—and that was only if it came up in conversation with him.

And whoever Mlle Aizawa was when they met in scant few hours.

“Uh, Gross, what's Dupain-Cheng doing sitting on the filthy floor?”

Leave it to Chloe to to cement in her newfound resolve with some good old fashioned aggravation.

“Good morning to you too, Chloe.” She stood up and dusted off her jeans. “Look, we don't like eachother--”

“Obviously.”

“But we both care about Adrien. And right now he's in a really bad place, so while you can still do your thing, I think he'd appreciate it if you just did it a little quieter today.”

“Ugh! Sounds just like something _you'd_ say, Marinette.” She pushed past her, Sabrina shooting her a skeptical but amused look as she dotingly trailed behind her. “If Adrikins wants me to be quieter for a day, I will, but only if he asks me himself!”

Well at least she tried. But thankfully Chloe was the last person she needed to tell and made her own way inside.

Lila was sitting in the back, but she was joined by Alya, still bouncing up and down even while sitting and no doubt quietly continuing her demands for details on a relationship that Marinette herself nipped in the bud the night previous. Alya's books were out and splayed across the desk in the back. No doubt going to spend the day there. At least until lunch.

But it didn't matter. Marinette was getting front row tickets for when Lila's web of lies began to collapse, and she hoped Alya was the first to find out. But for now she made sure she had charcoals in her bag as well as her pencils. You never know when you need to add color immediately after all.

She was doing the right thing. She had to be.

* * *

At least it was a little easier sitting alone in her normal seat than it was to sit alone in the back. Here, if she concentrated on her work and nothing else she could imagine that Alya was just sick for the day. It wouldn't work very well, but she could try. At least if the sound of her best friend and her greatest nemesis giggling as though everything were right in the world began to drift down to her, it was loud enough to catch Bustier's attention and she'd gently suggest the two of them quiet down.

They would. For a bit. But it'd start back up soon enough.

If Marinette were a pettier person she'd have confronted Alya about it by now. She'd have asked if Lila really was more important to her, if she was even spending time with her and earning her place in Alya's heart or just buying it with flashy stories and fake interviews. If she were a pettier person something like this could put a huge crack in their friendship.

But Marinette wasn't a pettier person. She could BE petty sure, but she had more patience than that on an average day. And today wasn't even an average day anyway. Today was special. She placed a hand in her purse to feel Tikki give her finger a hug and smiled slightly to herself.

Today would be hers. Her secret garden. She didn't know Mlle Aizawa yet, but she hoped they could be friends. Since Mme Bisset mistook her for the ballerina yesterday, it was likely they were around the same age, and Marinette didn't know if Mlle Aizawa had been to Paris before, or if this was her first time in the country at all, but if she was coming in from Japan as Mille Franchesca said, then it was possible she'd need someone to help her out. Marinette would volunteer, and maybe, if they could, they'd be friends. It would depend on what kind of person Mlle Aizawa was of course, Marinette wasn't desperate enough to try and befriend another Chloe, or heaven forbid, another Lila, but there weren't as many of those people in the world as it sometimes seemed. People are, for the most part, inherently good; even Chloe had had some golden moments recently.

So she wanted to go into her lunch hour with optimism. She'd be a nice girl. They'd exchange in witty banter, and they'd eventually become friends. Or at least friendly whenever they were there at the same time.

Was it possible for time to pass slowly yet quickly all at once? It felt like lessons were dragging on forever, notes going on and on and though she was paying attention, she still found herself glancing up at the clock more and more. Maybe she was just antsy. Okay no, she was completely antsy. She wanted out of here. She was offered the one thing she so desperately needed lately, and now that it was mere hours away her anticipation was at an all-time high.

But before she could even take a few breaths to calm herself down Mlle Bustier dismissed class and everyone began to file out. Marinette was in such a rush to get her things in order for a long moment she forgot she wasn't in a place where she was safe to get excited yet.

“Ooohhh someone lit a fire under her chair!” She heard Alya's voice carry from the back of the class and Marinette felt something like dread begin to coil in her gut.

She didn't hear what Lila said in response, but when Marinette looked over her shoulder quickly as she stood, She could see Alya's hazel eyes peeking out at her with a weird sort of... _appraising_ look. The kind she'd get when she would set up her and Adrien in 'romantic' situations that did nothing but make Marinette feel like a total goon and stutter her way into the next postal code. The kind that said she was waiting for something in specific to happen. For a long moment Marinette didn't realize what the look was supposed to mean, but as she reached the bottom of the stairs she saw Adrien finally stand from the corner of her eye, and she got it.

Alya was trying to see how she'd react.

Marinette didn't want to abandon Adrien after explicitly going to help him earlier, but she also didn't want to keep Mme Bisset and Mlle Aizawa waiting. So she compromised.

"You okay?” She only glanced at him once to indicate she was talking to him before glancing away. Like those nervous preteen boys did in cartoons, they'd face away from the person before they could talk to the girl they liked. She was getting better with Adrien now that the 'facade' or whatever had been cracking, but sometimes anything helps.

“Yeah... I'll be fine. Thanks for telling everyone, Marinette.” She met his gaze again to smile at him. He grinned back at her, clearly just as out of it as he was this morning.

“Maybe see if you could eat with Nino today, I've got plans or I'd offer to join you.”

Adrien chuckled and waved a hand. “No need to baby me, Marinette. She'd turned me down enough times that I really should have known better than to let it get this far anyway.”

Huh, well there went her theories about Kagami. She clearly liked Adrien after all, she'd never turn him down if he was approaching her. But then that brought up the question of who it was that DID turn him down. Marinette wasn't aware of anyone else he had a thing for, and if Alya or Nino knew they would have let her know earlier. Unless....

“Who was it anyway? I mean, who would ever turn _You_ down?” That was safe enough to say, right? Yeah, yeah friends say that kinda stuff because they believe in their friends and only want the best of romantic partners for them. No need to go back on it.

He sighed then, false smile falling and gaze turning to nothing in particular, “You wouldn't know her. She's a pen pal I've had for years. She lives in San Francisco.”

Marinette felt her chest crack just a little. So She never had a chance in the first place. It was inevitable, wasn't it? Of course she'd never had a chance. Her lips pinched together, sympathy warring with the desire to keep her secrets her own. Adrien should have lunch with Nino today. After all, Marinette's crush was one-sided and she couldn't let herself press it upon his broken heart.

“Okay, well, I gotta go. But if you need to talk about anything, or comfort food, or video games until you forget the rest of the world, the Bakery doors are always open for friends.”

Adrien smiled at her then and Marinette couldn't help but feel like it was a door closing before she could get her hand in. She was right back then, wasn't she? When he'd confided in her his growing crush on Kagami—who was another mystery in this, but if he said she's not the cause then Marinette would believe him—the universe wanted them to be friends. This time she couldn't let herself get talked out of it by the other girls. Honestly this time she wasn't even sure if the other girls WOULD talk her out of it.

It was fine. She was fine. Just like last time, she was fine. She still loved him, and maybe she always would, but that was okay. She told Chat last night to respect himself and not offer to be a rebound for broken hearted girls to press themselves up against, and Marinette had to do the same with herself.

“I don't suppose you want to come with me to my appointment, it's not going to be anything fun for anyone whose not a ballerina or a designer, but I should ask all the same.”

“No thanks, Marinette.” He thought for a moment before adding on “Though if I come home with you after classes for some cookies and videogames that'd be way better.”

“Are you guys talking about bakeries?” And of course. Lila zipped onto the scene, Alya a few paces behind her talking to Nino. “I remember this one bakery in Germany, and ooohh it was amazing! But it reminds me that I've never been to your family's shop Marinette! Perhaps I can join you both?”

Well Marinette could see how that would blow up in their faces.

“Maybe Lila, but I actually have to go. I don't wanna be late for my appointment.” She shot Adrien a look over her shoulder, something she hopefully conveyed as 'don't worry I won't let her come with us' and for a moment Adrien's sad eyes hardened and he shot her a sad grin.

Honestly, maybe this really would be for the best. The universe wanted her to be friends with Adrien, so maybe they'll end up having a really kickass friendship. But she took a breath and left the classroom. Her lunch was stuffed into her bag, so she picked up into a quick jog, trying to make sure she get there before the time was deemed an 'unacceptable amount of travel time'. And while she didn't keep her strength as Ladybug, she was always fast, so thank god; She continued to be fast.

The door chimed as Marinette opened the door to Lafontaine Legacy, and this time her trepidation was replaced by Anticipation and optimism. Adrien was being taken care of by Nino right now, and later the two of them would be snacking on her family's special snacks for sadness, and Marinette would let herself settle into the role of 'friend'. But that was later, this was now.

Mlle Francesca looked up and smiled when she met Marinette's eye. “Marinette! I was starting to get worried you'd be late! You can go on in, Madame is just getting the formalities out of the way with Mlle Aizawa.”

She nodded and after a moment to take a breath and pull out her sketchbook and pencils, she crossed the room and opened the door.

The little dance studio was almost like something out of a new wave movie. The floors were the same type of wood as the dance barres, the mirrors along one side having the light bounce off of them and making the room brighter and warmer than it otherwise would have been. There was acoustic wood on the walls, and a small stack of chairs in the corner beside a sound mixer.

“Ah, Mlle Dupain-Cheng, right on time, just as expected.” Mme Bisset pulled away from her conversation with Mlle Aizawa to smile at her. Marinette grinned back, but it felt pale in comparison to the simple, yet somehow still so endearingly elegant studio.

“I would never be late to something like this Mme Bisset!” Mlle Aizawa turned to look at her then, and Marinette finally got a good look at the girl.

She held herself with the exact poise she'd expect of a ballerina. Dark brown eyes peering at her curiously, appraising. Her ebony hair was held snug in two twin buns on either side of her head, and the remainder of her hair, a set of bangs to frame her face, bounced with her movements.

She was pretty, that much was obvious, but anyone could be fooled by a pretty face. So Marinette could only hope for the best as Mlle Aizawa walked forward, until she was beside Mme Bisset and smiling up at Marinette.

Wow she was... pretty short. Like almost a full head smaller than her.

“Marinette, was it?”

“Uh.... Yeah! And you're....” She realized after a beat that she never learned Mlle Aizawa's first name.

“Minto.” She offered Marinette her hand to shake. For a moment Marinette was worried, Mlle Aizawa, or rather, Minto, was clearly pretty loaded if only by way of what little Marinette knew of her already. She'd flown out to France from Japan to study Ballet, and now was receiving private lessons. Marinette's hands were covered in callouses from needles and healed burns from the bakery ovens.

But when her hand encircled Minto's, she could feel the callouses on her own hands. No doubt the kind that came from gripping ballet bars until one's knuckles began to bleed. Hard work. She was a rich girl, but she was determined.

“Nice to meet you.”

“Wonderful to meet you as well.” Her accent wasn't thick, but it was still pretty easily noticeable.

“Is this your first time in France?”

Minto chuckled, hand pulling away from Marinette's to cover her mouth. “Oh, it might as well be, the last time I was here I was three and I remember absolutely nothing.”

“Ah! Well if you need someone to show you around, I can-” her opportunistic nature was cut off by Mme Bisset, darting a hand between them, cutting off eye contact and making Marinette startle.

“Socialize later, little artist. The little bird here hasn't shown me what she's got that makes her worthy to be here yet.” Minto stiffened across from her, and Marinette felt her own cheeks heat up at her eagerness getting the better of her.

“Right! I'm so sorry Madame! I'll just be... over here...” She gestured to the far corner of the studio, pulling a chair out of the stack and sitting in it when she arrived there.

Minto had already started when Marinette flipped to a blank page in her sketchbook, but thankfully, not by much. She was standing with her whole body leaning forward and one leg straight and lifted out to counterbalance. She was holding it with what looked like very little strain, and Marinette was quick to begin to sketch out her form. She could feel the beginnings of a bodice in the back of her brain, it had to be tight so it wouldn't fall off, but soft so it wouldn't restrict. It had to bend with the person.

“Your balance seems almost perfect, little bird.” Mme Bisset spoke quietly but the sound traveled easily in the otherwise empty room. “but how do you put up under pressure?” She glanced at Marinette then. “Little Artist, press play on the sound mixer, will you? I want to see how she moves.” Marinette darted to her feet, and the chair scraped beneath her in her haste. Minto looked over at her from her still position and while Marinette was too far away to see her face, Mme Bisset tapped her and muttered a quick 'stay focused.' before Minto's gaze snapped forward again.

The music that played after a moment was slow, gentle, almost like a funeral dirge. Minto straightened, arms turning to a ring, that position ballerina's go into in all the cartoons, with one leg just barely touching the ground at the tip of her toe, her arms out and unmoving. And then, as Mme Bisset began to snap her fingers to the rhythm of the music, Minto began to truly dance.

And wow... Marinette was right when she'd insisted that studying the real thing was different than studying videos. Though her movements were slow, deliberate, there was an energy that she likely would never have been able to see just watching pixels on a screen. Every so often, in the middle of a turn, or in general when she had to look her way, Minto would glance up and meet her eye, before going back into it. The stresses of the day before this for just a moment were completely gone, wrapped up in the movements, and the music, and the half smile she was being shot every so often, almost like she was showing off specifically _for_ her.

Honestly Marinette completely forgot about her half done sketch just to watch. It was... just really cool. She'd been exposed to passion for a craft before, of course. Just a simple glance at Kagami while sparring or Alya while filming could have someone feel the passion echoing off of them. But this was a passion that felt like her own. Loud and quiet at the same time. A passion that emanated off of a person in waves, a passion that didn't need to be spoken to felt. Her movements were energetic and full of... well, full of _life_. It was loud and energetic and just so... _joyous_ without a single world being said. By the time the song petered out into nothing and Minto ended her dance with a spinning jump done entirely on the tips of her toes, Marinette felt goosebumps beginning to grow onto her skin. It took physical effort for her not to jump to her feet and applaud, remembering all at once that she in fact was supposed to be unobtrusive and just here to sketch. 

Mme Bisset hemmed and hawed for a long stretch of time, and Minto's eyes flickered to Marinette's again; she took the opportunity to shoot her a thumbs up and grin. Minto smiled back at her before her eyes flicked forward again.

“It seems as though the fates smiled upon you when you took up dance little bird.” Mme Bisset finally said. “Your tutors in Japan have taught you well. Perhaps a little too quickly though, you said you're fourteen?”

“Yes Madame.”

“I can tell. Your body's just barely begun to mature, and that will be a strain on your form as it continues its processes. Little Artist!” Mme Bisset waved a hand in Marinette's direction and cautiously, she approached the woman.

“Yes Madame?”

“Little bird, I noticed your attention was divided during your performance, yet your form was perfect. So I must ask you to be frank with me. Is our little artist a distraction for you? Neither of you will be punished, rest assured.”

Minto looked up at Marinette then, and Marinette realized after a beat of silence that because they were effectively strangers, if Minto didn't want her there Marinette's schedule could either get more complicated, or her secret garden could die before it was even truly begun.

But it seemed as though fate was on her side, as Minto grinned at her, her dark eyes almost shining in the light. “If anything, she was a benefit, Madame.” She tucked one of the tufts of hair that framed her face behind an ear. “I love showing off in front of beautiful girls.”

She must have looked as surprised as she felt, as she knew her cheeks must be bright pink at the compliment. She wasn't so insecure that any amount of praise would make her melt, and she knew she was cute, but there was something different in how she said it.

“Very well. In that case, we'll continue with testing your basics. I've seen what you can do with music, now let's see your fundamentals.”

Marinette was shooed back to her seat, and there she sat, intermittently chewing on her lunch, and sketching into her sketchbook the various positions and forms Minto was demanded into as Mme Bisset gave either praise, or minor corrections that Minto would huff quietly at before silently correcting herself. By the time her alarm rang and the two of them snapped their gazes back to her, Marinette had multiple sketches and a very rough idea of a swan bodice scribbled into her book.

“Oh geez! I'm so sorry Madame, Minto, I could have sworn I set it to vibrate!” as carefully and unobtrusively as she could, Marinette put her stuff back into her bag and stood. “Sorry again, but I have to go. This was absolutely amazing though!”

Just as she passed the two of them to make her way to the door, Minto reached out and grabbed her wrist, and pensive look on her face, she looked to Mme Bisset and then back to Marinette. “You're coming back on Thursday, right?”

“Her next lesson.” Mme Bisset explained. “And Mlle Dupain-Cheng has an All Week experimentation period, impatient little Bird. Your lesson however, is not done yet.” She put a hand on Minto's shoulder, and she let go.

“Unless I'm sick, which I generally don't get often, I'll be here.” Marinette smiled at Minto and she smiled back.

“Good, I'd be upset if such a pretty face was only here for one day!”

And then she turned and left.

She'd timed it so her way back to Francois Dupoint wouldn't be strenuous, and leave her time to think. And think she did. She thought about a lot of things. Minto seemed to be a friendly person. She'd complimented Marinette's looks twice, like, in the kind of way you do when you don't know much about a person but want them to like you. Her passion was similar to her own, almost a mirror of it really. After just a few short minutes of watching her dance, it was more evident than any statement thereof, that Ballet truly was Minto Aizawa's passion.

If she was in the new performance of Swan Lake that Mme Bisset had her in for, Marinette wanted to make her the best outfit she could for whatever role she was put in. If the rest of her troupe were equally passionate about all of this, then Marinette could only hope her own passion would show through on what she came up with for her designs.

By the time she was pondering what colors would look good with a petite frame, ebony hair—as compared to her own raven hair of course—and dark eyes, she was already standing outside the door to her class.

“Oh, Marinette!” the gentle voice of Mlle Bustier broke her from her thoughts, and she shot a smile at their slightly scatterbrained homeroom teacher as she approached. “Funny running into you here!” She chuckled, and Marinette smiled crookedly.

“I'm not late yet, Mademoiselle!”

“I can see that! And I can also see you're doing a lot better!” She held her folders closer to her chest “I'm glad, I've been noticing your dropping morale, and I was about to intervene, but I'm glad to see things are looking up for you again!”

Her smile felt a bit stiff. Of course Mlle Bustier would notice that kind of thing, She supposed she was just glad that she never made the correlation between Marinette's dumpster fire of a life to Lila's regular presence on campus. "They are Mademoiselle. If things work out well, it could be the comeback of the year!”

“Now that's the Marinette I know!” The warning bell rang after her punctuation, and Mlle Bustier gestured for Marinette to go in.

“After you!”

Inside the classroom Alya was back at her normal seat beside Marinette's normal seat. Lila wasn't in class yet, and neither were Adrien or Nino.

Marinette sighed and tightened the strap on her purse before sliding into her seat.

“Where the heck were you at lunch?” Alya asked by way of a greeting, her lips pinched to the side, and brow raised expectantly. “Lila gives me this huge scoop about Ladybug and you vanish!” Oh right, Lila's scoop that was so goddamn ironic it hurt. She almost forgot about that.

“A Designing opportunity.” She stated simply. “But I can't talk about it yet.” She shot Alya a small smile in hopes of selling the half-truth to her.

Well, if Alya believed Lila's lies so easily, would something that's not necessarily a lie be believed? Alya narrowed her eyes at her, leaning forward theatrically before huffing, pinched lips turning into a pout. “Oh Suuuureee! Non-disclosure agreement, can't even tell me! Jeez!” She tossed her head to the side, and folded her arms. And honestly if Marinette's faith in Alya hadn't been shaken so badly, she would be able to call that this was a joke with far more confidence than she was right now.

But thankfully Alya peeked at her out of the corner of her eye and grinned. “I get it, girl. But I SO gotta tell you about it after school!”

And wouldn't _that_ be fun. Thankfully, she had a built-in distraction. No matter her own decisions.

“Sure, But you're gonna need to ask Adrien too.”

She stared at Marinette for a moment, baffled, before huffing and looking down at the table. “Right, the whole 'don't be loud around him today' thing. Nino told me what he figured out over lunch.”

“So he didn't join you guys?”

“Nah, you know how his dad is...”

Marinette shrugged. “Well it's fine...” She started, reaching into her bag and pulling out her sketchbook again, flipping to the general outfit scribbles she'd put in considering Aizawa. “It was never Kagami, and it could never be me. I guess I can only be okay with that, you know?”

Alya was silent for a moment, and she didn't want to look up to try and divine her friend's emotions. “So you're just gonna give up like that?”

“I'm not going to offer myself to be Adrien's rebound girl.” Marinette didn't even need to look over at Alya to know she flinched. “I wouldn't let someone else with sincere feelings offer themself to be my rebound, so I won't let myself do the same. It's unfair to Adrien and it's unfair to me. She had to be at peace with it. She was at peace with it before, when it was just Kagami. So she had to be now.

“Well... Wow. Probably should have joined us for lunch then...” Only then did Marinette turn to look at her, Alya rubbed her neck nervously, a guilty sort of expression on her face.

“If I'd known that that was what you were going with, I'd have-” Alya was cut off by the door swinging open again, Lila striding in, making a big show of trying to 'pull herself together' wiping at her eyes and sniffling, and Marinette wondered with a mote of incredulity how many bottles of eyedrops she'd gone through to get that to look accurate. But as she approached, she took a deep breath, and with a watery grin approached Marinette's part of the desk.

“Alya told me everything, Marinette.” She placed a hand on her shoulder, Marinette doing her best to not shrug it off. “And look, just because we're in love with the same boy, it doesn't mean we have to hate each other! We can be rivals but also be friends!”

Well... that was just great wasn't it? Marinette was already stuck with people accusing her of rampant jealousy whenever she had anything even remotely skeptical to say about Lila, but now Lila could claim she'd never even known about Marinette's feelings for Adrien and she was 'above' catfighting—the irony of which was not lost on Marinette—so now that she's said in front of witnesses the same thing she tried to trick Marinette with in private, she had set up yet another trap to keep Marinette silent. If Lila didn't already know about her feelings regarding Adrien, She'd be way more upset at Alya for telling _yet another_ person about it without Marinette's consent, but she already did, so it was whatever.

“Disliking someone just because of jealousy is kind of silly, isn't it?” Marinette responded, Since Alya couldn't see Marinette's face from this angle, she shot Lila a glare, to which Lila's grin widened.

“I'm so glad you agree! May the best woman win!”

She offered her hand to Marinette. Whom took it after a beat, Lila squeezed her hand tighter, to which Marinette responded in kind.

“Though if we're both being fair,” Marinette decided to tack on, She was no master manipulator of course, but if anyone would have zero patience for Lila's machinations- “If he's not going to be with the girl that broke his heart, Kagami will probably be his next relationship. He already likes her in a romantic context.” If anyone would be unafraid of calling Lila's shenanigans out it would be Kagami, Francois Dupoint's resident Ice Queen was the 'put up or shut up' type. If Lila wasn't immediately able to back up whatever wild lie she made up to endear herself to Kagami, she'd be immediately called out and then pointedly ignored. Speaking of which she should probably warn Kagami about Lila, if Adrien hadn't already.

She supposed Kagami would be the next best option for Adrien anyway. If it couldn't be her, than at least it would be someone he really does like. Better Kagami than Lila or Chloe. That muted sadness returned to her then. The reminder that she never really had a chance, that she's likely never actually been on Adrien's radar at all. Or if she has it was one fleeting moment in the rain, only to be put aside and forgotten about.

That day felt so long ago now.

She let go of Lila's hand, and Lila strode back to her seat, at about the same time, Adrien and Nino shuffled in. Adrien still looked tired and upset, but Nino had his arm slung around him and they were speaking quietly to each other.

Marinette smiled.

* * *

That afternoon, she bade Adrien, Alya, and Nino to set up Ultimate Mecha Strike III as she 'cleaned up' her room before they could get to the movie marathon portion of this 'comfort hang out.

Alya shot her a furrowed expression, silently asking Marinette once again if she was sure. And Marinette had nodded back.

She noted with just an ounce of bitterness, how easily she'd been phased out of their group. Alya didn't demand to speak with her alone to try and talk her out of her decision like she had done before, Nino didn't give her that respecting hat tilt she once had thought was simply 'their thing' as friends. Adrien got a pass since he wasn't exactly at a hundred percent right now, but the distance was something that was becoming more and more evident even outside of a school setting.

Tikki buzzed around her head while Marinette approached her little Wall of Adrien. “Marinette, you don't have to do this.” She tried, her high voice tinged with worry.

Carefully, Marinette removed the first picture. “I think I do Tikki. It's okay, everyone's had one love that never went anywhere.” She smiled up at her Kwami “I can handle it.”

Tikki still looked unsure, and when she sighed it was with the weight of eternity on her tiny shoulders. “Alright... But for what it's worth, I still think you two would have made a good couple.”

“Thank you.” She couldn’t let herself cry. Not with her friends just one set of stairs below her, and not with most of the wall still undone. She couldn't cry yet. Crying was for before bed. She took deep breaths through her nose and removed another picture.

She put the photos in a small box with a latch on it, she changed her wallpaper to a random galaxy image she found after a quick image search, and finally, she put a bit of painters tape over the box, and wrote a label on it.

_First Love_

And it went into her desk.


End file.
